TCG Advisory Services LLC Takes Position in Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC)

TCG Advisory Services LLC purchased a new stake in Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC - Free Report) during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund purchased 1,710 shares of the aerospace company's stock, valued at approximately $800,000.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Headlands Technologies LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Northrop Grumman in the fourth quarter valued at $25,000. SRS Capital Advisors Inc. lifted its position in shares of Northrop Grumman by 960.0% during the fourth quarter. SRS Capital Advisors Inc. now owns 53 shares of the aerospace company's stock worth $25,000 after purchasing an additional 48 shares in the last quarter. Annis Gardner Whiting Capital Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Northrop Grumman in the third quarter valued at approximately $29,000. McIlrath & Eck LLC raised its position in Northrop Grumman by 247.6% in the 4th quarter. McIlrath & Eck LLC now owns 73 shares of the aerospace company's stock worth $34,000 after purchasing an additional 52 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Providence Capital Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in Northrop Grumman by 400.0% during the 3rd quarter. Providence Capital Advisors LLC now owns 100 shares of the aerospace company's stock worth $44,000 after buying an additional 80 shares in the last quarter. 83.40% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Northrop Grumman Stock Down 1.2 %

Shares of NYSE:NOC traded down $5.91 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $469.09. 1,443,462 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,144,324. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $464.96 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $465.81. The firm has a market cap of $69.42 billion, a PE ratio of 32.80, a P/E/G ratio of 1.95 and a beta of 0.34. The company has a quick ratio of 1.02, a current ratio of 1.13 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.04. Northrop Grumman Co. has a fifty-two week low of $414.56 and a fifty-two week high of $496.89.

Northrop Grumman (NYSE:NOC - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 25th. The aerospace company reported $6.32 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $5.83 by $0.49. The business had revenue of $10.13 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $9.77 billion. Northrop Grumman had a return on equity of 24.09% and a net margin of 5.38%. Northrop Grumman's quarterly revenue was up 8.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the company earned $5.50 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Northrop Grumman Co. will post 24.7 earnings per share for the current year.

Northrop Grumman Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 13th. Stockholders of record on Monday, February 26th were paid a dividend of $1.87 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 23rd. This represents a $7.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.59%. Northrop Grumman's dividend payout ratio is 52.31%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms have recently weighed in on NOC. Alembic Global Advisors upgraded Northrop Grumman from a "neutral" rating to an "overweight" rating and set a $532.00 target price for the company in a research report on Monday, April 22nd. TheStreet lowered shares of Northrop Grumman from a "b+" rating to a "c+" rating in a research note on Thursday, January 25th. StockNews.com raised shares of Northrop Grumman from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, April 26th. Susquehanna raised their price objective on shares of Northrop Grumman from $540.00 to $560.00 and gave the company a "positive" rating in a research note on Friday, April 26th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on shares of Northrop Grumman from $483.00 to $518.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Tuesday. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $509.38.

Insider Activity

In related news, CAO Michael A. Hardesty sold 955 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $450.37, for a total transaction of $430,103.35. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 4,137 shares in the company, valued at $1,863,180.69. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In other Northrop Grumman news, CAO Michael A. Hardesty sold 955 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Friday, February 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $450.37, for a total transaction of $430,103.35. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 4,137 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,863,180.69. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CAO Michael A. Hardesty sold 210 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $454.68, for a total transaction of $95,482.80. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 3,127 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,421,784.36. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 3,149 shares of company stock worth $1,421,147 in the last quarter. Corporate insiders own 0.22% of the company's stock.

Northrop Grumman Company Profile

Northrop Grumman Corporation operates as an aerospace and defense technology company in the United States, Asia/Pacific, Europe, and internationally. The company's Aeronautics Systems segment designs, develops, manufactures, integrates, and sustains aircraft systems. This segment also offers unmanned autonomous aircraft systems, including high-altitude long-endurance strategic ISR systems and vertical take-off and landing tactical ISR systems; and strategic long-range strike aircraft, tactical fighter and air dominance aircraft, and airborne battle management and command and control systems.